So I guess you're saying that Atkins is not harmful for two weeks.

Do you still believe Atkins is Pokeys best option?

Just because a journal hasn't been made about it, doesn't mean it isn't harmful.

Care to elaborate on why you like me

hows your protein intake and your sleep?

Tell me Bre, what evidence is there for evaluating sleep quality in a patient wishing to gain muscle mass?

Muscle growth
Bodybuilders use three main strategies to maximize muscle hypertrophy:

-Strength training through weights or elastic/hydraulic resistance
-Specialized nutrition, incorporating extra protein and supplements where necessary
-Adequate rest, including sleep and recuperation between workouts

That'd be great if we were in 6th grade. Wikipedia? Come on man, what a joke. You would be laughed out of the room if you tried to present that to anyone with medical training. Stick to telling kids to run some laps and bend over.

The original question is what evidence is there for evaluating sleep in someone wishing to gain muscle mass. Not what evidence is there that sleep influences muscle mass. There's a huge difference. Care to explain, doctor gym teacher?

In the grand scheme of things, few things are harmful for 2 weeks. When you're a doctor and have to deal with life and death, these little nuances don't seem to matter like they do to a person with no medical training posting on a message board as if he does.

Atkins is his best option for his stated goals. I'm not saying a "journal should be made about it," because in medicine we don't write things down in a black and white journal and expect people to follow it. Rather, publications are accepted to be published in existing journals, and a good publication should be a randomized controlled trial published in a respected, peer-reviewed journal, and its results should be interpreted only by a board certified physician. Sure, because a PUBLICATION hasn't been accepted that demonstrates harm doesn't mean it isn't harmful, but it means you can't accurately say it is.

I like you because you are naive and speak about things you know nothing about as if you have half a brain, and I would infer that you are probably a blissfully dumb person.

You forgot a few things in that list

how did this turn into tgf and bickering?

Im 26 and started the gym about a year and a half ago, and still havent moved from being 64kg. I may fluctuate half a kilo each way but it never goes further than that! I work out my entire body though legs are troublesome for me as i find squats difficult. I Do leg press, leg extensions, curls and calf raises instead of squats. Might throw lunges in next week. I am benching roughly 70kg to give you an idea of my strength, which is not bad considering my weight. Im average height and am pretty happy with how well my body has responded to weight lifting in terms of looking better. I just wish i could get heavier.

The problem i have is being lactose and gluten intollerant pretty much limits what i can eat. So i eat very healthy and only drink water (ok and shitloads of wine), and i smoke a pack a day, and dont do ANY cardio. so i dont know, im not really complaining because i certainly dont look like a malnourished russian (sorry ed ) im nicely ripped and dont put fat on but would like a little more strength which can only come from mass. do they have lactose AND gluten free protein shakes that are worth the money they charge?

EK promotion?

How tall are you, wam? If you're 64 kg you must either be quite skinny or not so tall.

Oh man, I feel like the prettiest girl at the dance with all the boys fighting over me!

In all due respect, I did ask for tips for losing concentrated weight the fastest so Ex mentioning Atkins was directly inline with that. I'm sure if I was just talking about general weightloss and overall improving my life style etc.. he may have come up with a different answer, which I think is where Bremang is tackling things from. I appreciate both advice really. But considering I'm going overseas in 6-7weeks I was hoping to make as big of an impact to look in better shape by then.

Once I'm there I'm sure I'll get even fitter because as well as sampling all your wonderfully famous unhealthy American food there will be lots of hiking and physical activities on the trek so will be more active for 5 weeks than I am here. Once I'm back I think I'd be looking for a better long term diet plan to maintain a healthy lifestyle and Atkins does cut down a lot of things that I like to eat but aren't really 'bad' for me as such, just things that wont help with rapid weightloss. So my thinking is maybe Atkins before trip, something else after it. I don't think I'd want to be doing Atkins long term.

So Ex going back to what you were saying before, do you have any tips or links to good examples of an Atkins type diet based over the course of a week? Like I've said, just about everything in my pantry at the moment seems like a no-no by the looks of things. The things that do look pretty low carb that I have are really non filling type stuff, so I have a feeling I'll be eating a lot more frequently in smaller portions or something?